PA MediaCopyright: PA Media
RMT Secretary General Mick Lynch Image caption: RMT Secretary General Mick Lynch
The strike was announced by the National Union of Railway, Maritime and Transport Workers, whose members include everyone from security guards and whistleblowers to catering and cleaners.
The union says workers – many of whom continued to work during the pandemic – have experienced real wage cuts and are now facing a cost-of-living crisis.
He accused the government of preventing railway companies from negotiating wages freely.
The union is also challenging Network Rail’s plans to cut 2,500 maintenance jobs as it seeks to save £ 2 billion over the next two years.
Network Rail says it will offer a salary increase of more than 3%, but only if the union agrees to modernize work practices.
His chief negotiator, Tim Schoveler, says about 1,800 jobs are expected to be cut, but the “vast majority” will be through “voluntary departure and natural waste.”
He insists he will not consider any changes that would make the railways less safe and that modernization is needed.
ReutersCopyright: Reuters
The government says railway companies need to negotiate.
However, Prime Minister Boris Johnson warned that travelers must be prepared to “keep the course”, insisting that reforms in the railway sector are in the interests of travelers.
Downing Street says £ 16bn in taxpayers’ money was used to support the railways during the Covid pandemic, but with the number of passengers still falling by a fifth and many companies accepting hybrid work, modernization is needed to avoid rising ticket prices and bankruptcy of operators.
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